Our History

The Potter’s Field Restoration Project was initiated on Sat, May 9th, 2015 by the Martinez Historical Society (MHS) under the auspices of the City of Martinez (City), City of Martinez Cemetery Commission (Commission) and with support from the community at large. The Martinez Cemetery Committee (Committee) continues to coordinate this ongoing project on behalf of MHS with the support of the City, Commission, the community at large and all other interested parties.

The Committee’s Primary Mission is to preserve an important historic outdoor museum and resource pertaining to early California, Western United States, Contra Costa County and the City of Martinez Histories.

The Committee’s Concurrent Mission is to attend to Potter’s Field with respect, care and compassion for all those who are buried there and their families, and give reverence and voice to its inhabitants.

The Project Goals include:

Collaboration among all groups to establish common management goals and reduce costs through shared resources

Stabilize Potter's Field to prevent further erosion and destruction of its historic structures

Continue maintenance of its structures, artifacts and grounds

Repair, restore and preserve all headstones

Map, reset and relocate dislodged Stones

Unearth and clean all Chinese-American Funerary Burner bricks

Repair, restore and preserve Funerary Burner

Restore Iron Fence posts and their representation around parameter of Chinese-American community burial plot

Research, record and recover the lost history of Potter's Field and its many residents including its general relationship to Alhambra Cemetery.

This Project directly supports the MHS’s Mission in particular: To preserve the history of Martinez and to preserve physical objects related to that history; To study and discover new information about the history of Martinez; To educate the community about history; To arouse interest in the study of history.